If the lack of space, loneliness and boredom wasn’t enough, Wayne Ingram will also only have a days worth of food and water with him when he enters the liferaft.

Taking place between 18th and 25th of May, professors from Portsmouth University will also be monitoring Wayne throughout the challenge in order to gather valuable data on how the human body copes in a survival situation.

Professor Mike Tipton will conduct experiments on Wayne’s body, before, during and after, with the results being presented in a thesis on survival.

Speaking about the challenge, Wayne said: “He [Mike Tipton] wants to simulate a quick evacuation from a boat which is sinking, so I will only enter the raft with one day’s food and water, and a small amount of clothing.”

“The information generated will go towards the study of helping future people who are stuck in liferafts and how to plan what they have in a grab bag.

“There’s going to be other deeper tests which are going to take place and it’s going to look at how one copes in a survival situation”, he said.

Wayne, who isn’t a sailor himself, is no stranger to charity work, having raised hundreds of thousands of pounds for individuals, a number of charities, and an orphanage in Africa.

The 45-year-old paramedic is hoping his latest challenge will raise more than £20,000 for the hospital.

“There are plenty of sailors telling me I’m mad, even the harbour master said ‘you’re mad to do this’.

“I think my naivety is a blessing in disguise really, because I don’t know what to expect. I know I’m going to feel sick but at the end of the day, what’s going to happen to me is nothing compared to what happens to the children in the hospital, or their parents.

“If I can raise money to help them, the discomfort that I’m going to face for seven days is going to be ok.”